Derek was born and raised in western Oklahoma. He married Valerie in June of 2008 and made their home on the family farm in Willow, OK. They were both saved and baptized at First Baptist Church of Willow, OK. They have four children, Nocona 12, Jackson 10, and Ethan 6, and Luke 4.
Derek lived an extremely rebellious life as a teen and into his young adult life. Even though he went to church with his grandparents from a very young age, he did not understand the simple fact that his sin was what separated him from the Lord. Derek was attending a revival when the Lord summoned his soul from the depths of sin. The passage was Ephesians 6:10 and the following. The preacher was calling all Christians to don the full armor of God and to repent and to fully trust the Lord Jesus. That night in the small First Baptist Church of Willow, OK in March of 2010, Derek repented of his sins and became an adopted child of God. His call to ministry came a few years later.
The Lord called Derek to the Gospel Ministry and Derek surrendered to preach in March 2014. They sold their home and farm to move to Kansas City, MO, to attend Spurgeon College at Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. In December of 2015, the Lord called Derek to serve as pastor of Melbourne Baptist Church, in northern Missouri. Derek served there until the end of July 2017. Derek and his family then moved back to North Kansas City where he served as the Share Team leader at Tower View Baptist Church, he continued he as a student at the Spurgeon College.
In December of 2019, the Lord called Derek and his growing family back home to Oklahoma. Currently Derek is serving a pastor of First Baptist Chattanooga, where he enjoys preaching the Word, and serving with Chattanooga Fire & Rescue as both a firefighter and chaplain. At FBC Chattanooga, Derek has been continuing to pour into men who are being raised up as the new leadership.
As the father of a young family, Derek strongly holds to raising his children in a Gospel centered home. Derek has a passion to shepherd their hearts by sharing the Word through teaching, reading, and singing as a family. Derek led Nocona to the Lord, and in June 2018, Derek had the great joy of baptizing her.